Engineering and Mining Journal - Whether the market is copper, gold, nickel, iron ore, lead/zinc, PGM, diamonds or other commodities, E&MJ takes the lead in projecting trends, following development and reporting on the most efficient operating pr
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masthead gave the address of the publisher (Western & Company): 37 Park Row, New York. Today, that would be near the Brooklyn Bridge in lower Manhattan. They were proud of their new title, its location and its affilia- tion with Scientific American . The Park Building appears on the cover of the third edition. Soon, Dawson begins to hear plati- tudes from various contributors and com- petitors about the scholarly nature of the AJM and he routinely published them. Developing the Mines of the New Frontier Pioneers were leaving the urban setting in pursuit of the "American dream" only to encounter hardship, lawlessness and hostile natives. People traveled by horseback, car- riages and riverboats. "Few have begun to realize the extent of the 12 states and terri- tories on our Western borders, whose vast stores of mineral wealth are yet to attract teeming multitudes to them," Dawson wrote. The pioneers that reached the American West found scenic beauty and gainful employment, but the work in the mines was difficult. The miners and mining engineers in those days would have scoffed at today's notions toward regulations, environmental concerns and aboriginal rights, offering to "fill them with lead rather than give them bread." It was, after all, survival of the fittest. The AJM begins to set benchmarks for production and track the number of mining companies and mines. However, census information from 1850 and 1860 is incomplete and it becomes apparent, that although it's probably the best information at the time, it's only a loose understanding of what is happening in the field. The rich gulch and placer mines of California, Colorado, Montana, and Idaho begin to gradually wash out and the attention of both the miners and "capitalists" funding the operations, begins to turn toward quartz deposits, which has been justly termed "the mother of gold." It's also one of the hardest geologic formations they have pursued. Dawson offered an editorial explaining that it's only a matter of time before American ingenuity prevails and quartz mining be- comes a profitable business. The inaugural journal proudly announced that the first American School of Mines has been founded at Columbia College in New York. Until this point, mining engineers were educated in England and Saxony, arguably the birthplace of modern mining. In the same edition, Dawson announced the American Bureau of Mines. Unscrupulous operators were palming off worthless mining properties on investors, which was tarnishing the image of miners. A number of wealthy citizens formed an association, the American Bureau of Mines, to "bring the miner and the capitalist together upon an honest basis—the one with his valuable mine, the other with his money to develope (sic) it." In the second edition a Board of Trustees and Experts were named for the American Bureau of Mines. Many of the experts also served as faculty at the Columbia School of Mines. The bureau's mantra was simple, "Mines, mineral lands, and resources examined and reported upon. Competent engineers fur- nished to Mining Companies." Technology Advances At the time, the mines were starting to use compressed air to power equipment under- ground. Each of the early editions of AJM featured a piece of equipment prominently on the front page. The second edition opened with the "Little Giant" quartz mill. Weighing in at 1,100 lb, it promised to have the grindability of a stamp mill, but with a much higher capacity. Readers reported pulverizing 1,000 lb/h producing 5,000 mesh dust. While most of the early editions featured a portable steam engine on the front page, a centrifugal pump appears on the front page of the September 1 edition. Portability in those days meant that the system mounted on a sled could be towed by two draft horses. The use of nitroglycerine as a blasting agent held great promise, but handling and transporting it had become an issue. Major explosions killed dozens at transfer points in the shipping process. Some states were con- sidering laws to make the use of nitroglycerin illegal. Meanwhile, miners continued to experiment with its use to break rock. After inventing a detonator and designing a blast- ing cap, Alfred Nobel turned his attention to rendering nitroglycerin innocuous. In 1867, he would invent dynamite. In the meantime, however, the U.S. Senate passed a bill pro- hibiting the transportation of nitroglycerine on any vessel or carriage carrying passengers. AJM continued to boldly defend its use. Most of the stories were submitted by miners and mining engineers. The corre- spondents discussed mining and mineral processing, and they also discussed their travels and the cultures they encounter. In addition to the mining-related articles, the American Journal of Mining also covered some of the discussions that probably took place around the campfire, such as the shape of the Earth. Some believed it to be lemon- shaped while others thought it would likely resemble an orange. They also debated the usefulness of the Moon and tidal changes. In the summer of 1866, discussions begin to surface related to new mining laws for the U.S. "The unwise Mineral Land Act was recently passed by Congress and approved by the President—the repeal of which we shall urge at the proper time," Dawson wrote on August 4, 1866. In four short months, the man who vowed not to dis- cuss politics in his salutatory was squaring off against the U.S. government, taking the posi- tion of enlightened mining engineers, metal- lurgists, geologists and their contemporaries (his readers), much as E&MJ; does today. While a lot has changed in 150 years, today's trade journal still bears much similarity to the early editions as far as its editorial spirit. 36 E&MJ; • JANUARY 2016 www.e-mj.com E & M J – 1 5 0 Y E A R S This lithograph of Gardner's Rock Drilling Machine was included on the first page of the first edition.